A Democratic magistrate judge in Doña Ana County, New Mexico, resigned his post in early March after he was caught harboring an illegal alien. And that illegal alien, federal authorities believe, is a member of the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua (TdA) terror gang.
But maybe Joel Cano was just living up to the Democrats’ unofficial motto — illegal aliens “are the people we care about most” — when he provided lodging for Venezuelan goon Cristhian Ortega-Lopez.
ICE Search
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) began an investigation into Ortega-Lopez in January, after receiving an anonymous tip. In March, the feds charged him with unlawfully possessing firearms.
The TdA suspect “was allegedly residing with other illegal aliens” in Las Cruces and possessed firearms, ICE reported:
Ortega-Lopez had entered the United States illegally on Dec. 15, 2023, and was released pending removal proceedings. Social media evidence showed Ortega-Lopez in possession of multiple firearms at a shooting range in Las Cruces.
On February 28, the Albuquerque Journal reported, ICE agents searched the home owned by Judge Cano and his wife, Nancy. “Court filings state that agents recovered four firearms from a neighboring home owned by April Cano, who is identified in court filings as Nancy Cano’s daughter,” the newspaper reported:
A criminal complaint alleges Ortega-Lopez admitted to possessing and firing them, as seen in photos and videos posted on Facebook last December.
Ortega-Lopez was taken into custody along with other individuals described as roommates in court filings. On March 3, he appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Damian Martinez on charges of being an unlawful alien in possession of a firearm and ammunition. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison.
After Joe Biden’s border team released Ortega-Lopez, the illegal landed in El Paso, prosecutors allege. There “he roomed with five other people,” the Journal reported. That’s where he met Nancy Cano “doing construction and handyman jobs, and accepted her offer to stay in a casita behind her home,” the newspaper continued:
In April 2024, Ortega-Lopez filed a request for immigration relief, listing the Las Cruces address as his residence.
Prosecutors say Ortega-Lopez was subsequently introduced to April Cano, “who possessed a large number of firearms” and “allowed him to hold and sometimes shoot various firearms,” allegedly including rifles and a handgun tied to the social media posts.
Exhibits presented in federal court include a social media image showing Ortega-Lopez posing with the judge.
Almost Released, Judge Resigns
But that might not be the worst of the story. The federal magistrate judge, Martinez, wanted to free Ortega-Lopez into the custody of Nancy Cano.
“I don’t think he would just let anybody live in his property,” Martinez inexplicably said of legal colleague Cano. That head scratcher shows up in the federal prosecutors’ appeal to keep Ortega-Lopez locked up. “The appeal also states that Martinez requested that pretrial services staff assess whether Nancy Cano could be the defendant’s third-party custodian, despite the arrest having taken place at her residence,” the Journal reported.
Cano didn’t offer a reason in his resignation letter, dated March 3. But he quit after the feds found Ortega-Lopez living with the judge. Cano’s last day was March 21. He began service after he was elected in 2010.
This article was originally published at TheNewAmerican.com and is reprinted here with permission.